One personal trainer vs. One heart rate monitor

Bold Statement: The perceived exertion scale is bullshit.

I wear my heart rate monitor (hrm) during almost every work out so I can maintain my hr in an optimum range (140 - 166 bpm) the entire time and check it for regular feedback so I know when to rest for a minute and when to push a little harder. Every time I stop for a moment, my personal trainer hops on his soapbox enthusiastically motivating me to hurry up and get to work. When I tell him that my hr is at 176, he responds every time with a "psha" and says that the hrm must be broken.

You see....he doesn't use a hrm because it is his opinion that the scale of perceived exertion is much more reliable and he can't possibly understand how my heart rate could ever be 176 if I'm still able to have a winded conversation.

Trainer - On a scale of 1-10, how do you feel?
Salina - 176
And the battle is on....

Trainer - That's not an option on the scale.
Salina - 175

Trainer - Still not on the scale.
Salina - 173

Trainer - I can't understand how your hear rate could be at 173 if you're able to tell me that it's at 173.
Salina - 170

Trainer - I just don't believe it.
Salina - You want to argue with my heart rate?

Trainer - It just can't be right.
Salina - Well it is.

Trainer - It can't be.
Salina - Feel my pulse if you don't believe me.

Trainer - Holy shit, it's racing.
Salina - 165, I told you so.

Trainer - Well at least it drops quickly. That's a good thing.
Salina - 150

Trainer - It just shouldn't be getting that high with weight training.
Salina - Even if I'm working the major muscles doing combined exercises like lunges on the Bosu with hand weights to a bent row in between?

Bosu Ball

Trainer - Ya, even then.
Salina - Now I don't believe THAT!

Trainer - It just means that you're not conditioned.
               Offended face....GO!
Salina - Even though my hr drops 30+ bpm in 30 seconds?

Trainer - Well, no, that's a good thing.
Salina - Perhaps the racquetball several times every week for the past almost 2 years has trained my heart rate to jump and fall quickly? Ever think of that?

Trainer - Not possible.
Salina - Psh (insert eye roll here)

Then we decide to change subjects to more political topics like whether Michael Jackson was guilty of molesting little boys. That's another post for another day.